NMSA must have back-up plan for Oleai oval project

Northern Marianas Sports Association vice president Dr. Kurt Barnes and contractors bidding for the resurfacing of the Oleai track oval inspect the facility. (Jon Perez)

The Northern Marianas Sports Association must have a back-up plan in order to complete the resurfacing of the track oval inside the Oleai Sports Complex in case the funds approved for the project is insufficient.

This was what Northern Marianas Housing Corp. deputy corporate director Zenie P. Mafnas suggested when she and NMHC planner and environmental officer Jacob Muna met with NMSA vice president Kurt Barnes and NMSA executive director Tony Rogolifoi.

They met last Wednesday afternoon following the site inspection they made together with the representatives of the 10 interested contractors, which will be bidding to land the project.

Muna said that they are extending the submission of the bids from Jan. 22 to Jan. 29 to give the contractors more time to come up with a respectable offer.

Once the contract is awarded to a winning bidder, NMHC and NMSA are expecting the project—if no more problems arise— to be completed by the end of June or just before the start of the rainy season.

The contractor must have 10 years of experience in doing similar projects is one of the requirements that are written on the bid packets given by NMHC.

Mafnas said they don’t want the resurfacing to be stopped in case the money that they will be providing would not be enough to finish the entire project.

She added that they are just thinking of possible scenarios that might happen since they don’t want to fund a project that would be stopped and won’t be completed.

“We don’t want to start a project that would be stopped midway after we learned that there will be shortage of funds. We just don’t want to fund a project that would be half-baked,” said Mafnas.

“The track must be in excellent condition since that’s the reason why we’re funding the project and to prepare it for public use and for future events.”

NMHC is funding the project after NMSA became eligible to receive $965,000 through the Community Development Block Grant. Eighty percent of the money is allocated for the resurfacing of the track while the remaining 20 percent or $193,000 is reserved for administrative work.

Barnes said if in case the project would not yet push through, they have no choice but to temporarily close the track facility for the public’s safety.

If there’s no project, then we have to close down the track because it has a lot of cracks and bubbles. It is not safe for public use and people might trip or get hurt if they continue to use it,” added Barnes.

One solution that could be done is to ask the Governor’s Office for additional funding and NMSA must do this before the project start.

Rogolifoi said they welcome Mafnas’ suggestion since it would really nice to finally see and use the new track oval.

“That’s what they [NMHC] are asking us to do. To have a back-up, what if there’s a lack of funds. We must be prepared for this,” said Rogolifoi.

“[NMHC] is just reminding us that, what if the winning bidder is over the budget. That’s why we need to look for additional funding. That is just our main concern for now,” he added.

Rogolifoi said that they would ask for a meeting with Gov. Ralph DLG Torres to ask for additional funds from the government.

“We’ll wait for the funeral of the late governor Eloy S. Inos, and then we’re going to ask Gov. Torres. We’re sure we can get a positive response since the track is one of the most used facilities here,” added Rogolifoi.

NMSA is in the process of having the track resurfaced after black patches, bubbles, and cracks could be seen on the rubber surface of the decade-old facility. The resurfacing is part of their project to prepare Saipan’s sports facilities in time for the island’s hosting of the 2021 Pacific Mini Games.